Cuomo touts school changes

Governor's commission recommends ideas gleaned from hearings

New York students would begin school at a younger age, spend more time in class and have better-prepared teachers instructing them, under recommendations issued by Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Education Reform Commission.

The recommendations include expanding early learning, especially for high-needs students; improving technology; streamlining consolidation of school districts and mergers of regional high schools; increasing school district accountability and transparency; better preparing teachers and rewarding superior educator performance; providing community services, such as health care, in high-needs districts; and creating more of a connection from high school to college and careers.

At a Cabinet meeting at the Capitol on Wednesday, Cuomo acknowledged that the changes carry significant cost and may spark a tough political fight.

"Frankly, it's going to be a question of money," he said. "That's something that we're going to have to weigh when we look at the overall financial scene."

The 25-member commission on Wednesday released preliminary recommendations based on information gathered from 300 stakeholders at 11 hearings around the state. The group will not release a final report until fall 2013.

Commission member and Harlem Children's Zone founder Geoffrey Canada said sweeping changes are needed because the current public education system does not work.

"We have failed our kids miserably," said Canada, who has gained notice for starting a network of charter schools integrated with community services.

The report recommends that children spend more time in school and that SUNY and CUNY require a 3.0 grade point average for students who apply to advanced education degree programs. It suggests creating a performance management system to track the success of academic programs and school spending.

The recommendations are not binding, but Cuomo said he will use them to inform his State of the State address on Wednesday. The primary question looming over the presentation was how to pay for the proposals, virtually all of which have been circulating among education experts for years. Cuomo did not specify how he would find funding or what changes he would prioritize.

"The education bureaucracy has been running the education program and the students got lost," Cuomo said.

Jan. 2, 2013. Video courtesy of nysnys.com.

Media: Times Union

Cuomo never specified exactly which groups comprise the "bureaucracy," but he referred to past political battles as signs that he wouldn't back down from unpopular notions, which may include extending the school day or school year. Most notably, he battled with the state teachers union over a new teacher evaluation system.

New York State United Teachers President Richard Iannuzzi said some of the findings made him optimistic, particularly an expansion of early learning opportunities. He said the schoolhouse has to be more than an academic setting, and the report recognized that by emphasizing the need for placing some social services at school. He said NYSUT was supportive of creating a bar exam for teachers because it raised expectations for the profession.

"A culture that elevates the value of the teaching profession is consistent with a culture of high-achieving students," he said.

Most of the news releases issued by education groups in the state in response to the recommendations were positive. But Rick Timbs, executive director of the Statewide School Finance Consortium, said the committee failed to grasp the precarious financial position of districts around the state. He called for a new Foundation Aid Formula and claimed many districts face fiscal insolvency before the changes could even be enacted.

"If we had all the time in the world, these recommendations would be a great start,'' Timbs said in a statement. "Unfortunately, we don't. These recommendations, though well meaning, don't move the ball far enough down the field to stop the increased slide of these districts into fiscal and programmatic insolvency.''

John King, Commissioner of the NY State Education Department and President, University of the State of New York, left, Jessica Cohen, retired Superintendent of Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES, center, and Nancy Zimpher, Chancellor of the State University of New York, right, members of the New NY Education Reform Commission, listen to a speaker as he gives input about the state's public education system, during a public hearing at the Empire State Plaza on Tuesday July 10, 2012 in Albany, NY. (Philip Kamrass / Times Union) less

John King, Commissioner of the NY State Education Department and President, University of the State of New York, left, Jessica Cohen, retired Superintendent of Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES, center, and Nancy ... more

Photo: Philip Kamrass

Photo: Philip Kamrass

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John King, Commissioner of the NY State Education Department and President, University of the State of New York, left, Jessica Cohen, retired Superintendent of Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES, center, and Nancy Zimpher, Chancellor of the State University of New York, right, members of the New NY Education Reform Commission, listen to a speaker as he gives input about the state's public education system, during a public hearing at the Empire State Plaza on Tuesday July 10, 2012 in Albany, NY. (Philip Kamrass / Times Union) less

John King, Commissioner of the NY State Education Department and President, University of the State of New York, left, Jessica Cohen, retired Superintendent of Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES, center, and Nancy ... more